Parliament House Canberra ACT 2602
Telephone 02 6277 7820 Facsimile 02 6273 4140
The Hon Alan Griffin MP
Minister for Veterans’ Affairs
VA017
Thursday 2 April 2009
EXPLOSIVE DETECTION DOG SNIFFS OUT ‘M IS FOR MATES’
Explosive detection dog, Ivy, today helped Minister for Veterans’ Affairs Alan Griffin to launch ‘M
is for Mates’, the Department of Veterans’ Affairs education resource for primary school
students.
Primary and secondary schools across Australia each year receive an education resource from
the Australian Government to help teach a new generation about Australia’s wartime history.
Mr Griffin said that this year all primary schools around Australia will receive a copy of ‘M is for
Mates – Animals in Wartime from Ajax to Zep’ to teach students about the animals that
Australian forces have relied on in wartime and in peace operations.
“Animals are an important part of Australia’s wartime history and many animals work in the
Defence Force today. The education resource, ‘M is for Mates’, is an engaging and lively way to
teach children about our wartime heritage by focusing on the roles that animals have played
during war and peace operations,” said Mr Griffin.
“Many animals have served Australian forces overseas – camels transported soldiers and
equipment in Africa and the Middle East, carrier pigeons delivered messages and, more
recently, dolphins have been trained to detect underwater mines.
“In the First World War 120,000 Australian horses were deployed overseas and many young
men from the bush joining the Light Horse Brigades took their own horses to war with them.”
“Dogs, as well as being ‘man’s best friend’, performed important jobs such as carrying
messages, tracking down enemy soldiers and warning of aircraft attacks, and today dogs serve
in locations such as Afghanistan, the Solomon Islands and East Timor, detecting explosives.”
Ivy, a black Labrador who detects explosive devices for the Australian Army, demonstrated her
skills at today’s launch at Curtin Primary School, the ACT Primary School winner of the 2008
Anzac Day Schools’ Awards.
“With her handler, Ivy can save lives. A dog’s sense of smell is hundreds of times more
sensitive than ours and Ivy is trained to protect people and places by sniffing out explosives,” Mr
Griffin said.
The Department of Veterans’ Affairs worked with the Australian War Memorial to develop the
resource which works alongside the AWM’s travelling exhibition ‘A is for Animals’. Information
on the Department of Veterans’ Affairs education resources, including the secondary school
resource ‘Australian Prisoners of War‘, and the Anzac Day Schools’ Awards is available at
Editor’s note: An image of ‘M is for Mates’ and photographs of the event are available by
emailing dvamedia@dva.gov.au.
Media inquiries: Laura Ryan 0437 863 109
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